Washing machine



July 14, 1936. G. w. DUNHAM WASHING MACHINE Filed Oct. 19, 1934 60d ak: 60 0 605 El Wmq, 49W

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Patented July 14, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WASHING MACHINE George W. Dnnham, Weotport, Com, assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York My invention relates to domestic washing machines of the type in which washing is effected by the oscillatory movement of an agitator mounted within the tub' and in which a swinging wringer mounted adjacent the tub is used for wringing the clothes.

The object of my invention is to provide an improved construction and arrangement in a washing machine of this type, and for a consideration of what I believe to be novel and my invention, attention is directed to the accompanying description and the claims appended thereto. In the accompanying drawings, Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of a washing machine embodying my invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the bracket and clamp for connecting the wringer' post and'the tub; Fig. 3 is a sectional plan view of the washing machine on line 3-4 shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 44 of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 3; and Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the guiding lever which guides the reciprocating movement of the rack and moves the rack into and out of engagement with the pinion.

Referring to the drawings, the tub I, which is provided with a. cover la, is supported at the center by a tubular post 2 which projects through a central opening 3 in the bottom of the tub. The tub rests on a flange 4 on the post 2 and the tub is clamped between the flange and a nut 5 which is threaded on the post. Suitable gaskets 6 are arranged between the tub and the flange 4 and the nut 5 to prevent leakage. The lower end of the post 2 is secured to the top of the gear casing 1 and is supported thereby. The gear casing extends diametrically across and is bolted at either end to the depending sides of a cylindrical skirt 8. Legs 9 for supporting the washing machine are secured to the skirt 8. The gear casing braces the skirt 8 and provides a rigid central support for the tub. The outer edge of the tub is tightly held against a rubber cushion III on the upper edge of the skirt 8. This provides additional support for the tub. The lower end of the tub projects within and is wedged against the upper rim of the skirt. This increases the lateral rigidity of the skirt and allows the use of lighter material for the skirt. Hooks 9a are provided onthe legs 9 for coiling the cord 9?) when not in use.

The post 2 extends upwardly into the tub above the normal water level of the tub. -A vertical shaft II for driving an agitator l2 extends upwardly through the post and is iournalled at the upper end in a bearing I! carried by thepost.

The coupling between the shaft l I and the agitator l2 comprises a nut l4 fixed to the upper end of the shaft II which fits in complementary opening in the upper end of the agitator. The

' shaft and agitator are supported on the tubular 5 post 2 by a thrust washer l5 which rests on the upper end of the post. A cap I6 is snapped in place on the upper end of the agitator to prevent leakage through the opening in the agitator into the interior of the post 2. The agitator has 10 a depending tubular portion which extends downwardly around the post 2. A collar I l which is secured to the inner surface of the depending tubular portion of the agitator at the lower end engages a hearing it on the post 2 to guide the movement of the agitator. The lower end of the agitator shaft II is carried in a bearing I9 in the upper wall of the gear casing I. A chamber is provided above the bearing l9 to collect lubricant which may be carried above the bearing. This 20 lubricant is returned to the gear casing through a passage M in the upper wall of the gear casing. A collar 22 is provided on the shaft above the upper wall of the gear casing which will deflect water, which may leak down the shaft it, so that it will fall down on the upper wall of the gear casing I and pass out between the bosses supporting post 2. This prevents the leakage of wate into the interior of the gear casing.

The agitator shaft ll extends within the gear casing I and has a pinion 24 keyed to the lower end which is adapted to mesh with a reciprocating rack 25 to cause oscillation of the agitator l2. The rack is fixed at the left end to the lower end of a pin 26 eccentrlcally carried by a worm wheel 21. Pin 26 is rotatable in worm wheel 21. The worm wheel is keyed to the lower end of a vertical shaft 28 which is journalled in the bearing 29 eccentrlcally carried in a tubular wringer post 29a. The wringer post is clamped to the upper wall of the gear casing by a Split clamp 29b formed integrally with the upper wall of the gear casing. The worm wheel 21 is rotated by a worm 30 which is driven by an electric motor 3| carried on the gear casing by rubber rings 32a. clamped to supports 32. An intermediate shaft 33 is connected between the motor shaft 34 and -the worm shaft 35 by flexible couplings. 36. A

thrust'ball 31 is provided at the end of the worm shaft 35. The thrust ball is adjusted by a screw 310. A thrust washer 31b is provided for thrust in the other direction. Since the bearing 29 is eccentrlcally carried in the wringer post 29a. by rotating the wringer post in the clamp 29b, the

mesh of the worm 30 with the worm wheel 21 5o may be adjusted. With this arrangement, the worm wheel2l is continuously rotated in one direction by the motor, and the crank pin 20 hearing in the worm wheel causes the rack 2' to be reciprocated. The body of the rack 2! is offset and rigid so that although the end of the rack 'flxed to the pin 2. is below the teeth of the worm wheel 21, the teeth of the rack and the bearing of crank pin 28 are in line with the teeth of the worm wheel 21. This reduces the load 'on' the bearings 01' the shaft 28 and eliminates vertical forces in the rack thrust which would have a tendency to cause slaps resulting in objectionable oises. n The reciprocating movement of the rack 25 is guided by a channel-shaped rocking bracket or guiding lever 38 which is pivotally carried from the upper side of the gear casing by a pin. The pin 38 fits into hole 40 in the upper and lower flanges of the guiding lever. The rack extends between the upper and lower flanges of the guiding lever. A roller 4|, which is rotatably carried on a sleeve 42a and held in place between the flanges of the guiding lever by a pin 42, engages the rear edge of the rack and holds the rack in proper engagement with the pinion 24 when the parts are in the position shown in Figs. 3 and 5. A pin 43 depending from the lower side of the upper flange of the guiding lever fits into a longitudinal groove 44 in the upper surface of the rack and pulls the rack out of engagement with the pinion when the guiding lever is pivoted in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 3.

To'move the rack into and out of engagement with the pinion, the guiding lever is pivoted about the pin 39 by an adjusting lever 45 slidably connected to the guiding lever. This slidable connection comprises a cam slot 46 in lever 45 which fits over the projecting end of pin 42 on the guiding lever. The cam slot 46 has a portion 41 extending longitudinally of the adjusting lever 45 in which the pin 42 rests when the rack is in engagement with the pinion and has a portion 48 which is inclined to the longitudinal portion 41. A spring 52 connected between the adjusting lever and the gear casing urges the adjusting lever in the direction to maintain the rack in engagement with the pinion. When the adjusting lever is in the position shown in Fig. 3, an adjustable stop 53 threaded in the side wall of the gear casing engages the edge of the adjusting lever and holds the front end of the adjusting lever so that the rack is held in engagement with the pinion. The adjusting lever is connected at the left end to a crank 49 which is fixed to the lower end of a pin 50 rotatably carried in the upper wall of the gear casing. When the adjusting lever is in the position shown in Fig. 3, the adjusting lever is substantially in line with the center line of the crank 49, and the force acting along the adjusting lever has less tendency to rotate the crank than the force of spring 52. The adjusting lever therefore will remain in the position shown in Fig. 3. The pin 50 is rotated by a handle 5| attached to the upper end of the pin 50. When the handle 5| is rotated in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 3, the point to which the left-hand end of the adjusting lever is pivoted, is moved away from the pin 38 on which the guiding lever 38 is pivoted. This causes the adjusting lever to be moved longitudinally away from the guiding lever causing pin 42 on the guiding lever to be moved to the inclined portion 48 of the cam slot 46. This causes the guiding lever to be pivoted in a counterclockwise direction aboutthepinllandtomovetherackflmitof engagement with the pinion 24. During this movement, the stop It guides the longitudinal movement of the adjusting lever. The springlltendstoholdtheerankflinaposi- I tion on either side of the center line of the force of the spring through the pin II. In the positions intermediate these extreme positions of the crank 4!, the spring I! is stretched and when the handle II is moved so that I.

.the force of the spring I2 shifts to either side of the pin ll, the energy stored in the spring 52 is available for completing the movement of the handle II with a snap action. The spring 52'and the crank 49 therefore provide an over- 1 center device for moving the adjusting lever so as to move the rack into and out of engagement with the pinion.

The upper side of the gear casing comprises an upper wall withintegral depending side walls. 5 The lower side of the gear casing is formed by a removable-cover plate 84. This plate extends over the whole area of the bottom of the gear casing so that when the plate is removed, the entire mechanism contained within the gear casing is exposed for adjustment. The gear casing is filled to a suitable level with lubricant which is inserted through a plug 55 in the side wall of the casing. In order to prevent the leakage of the lubricant when the bottom plate 54 is removed, the washing machineis inverted and the lubricant is contained between the top and side walls of the gear casing. Braces 54a extend between the legs 9 and a bracket 54b attached to the center of the cover plate 54.

The vertical shaft 28, which is driven by the 'motor ll through the worm 30, is used to drive the wringer. The upper end of the vertical shaft 28 is carried in a bearing 51 fixed to the inside of the wringer post 29a. A pinion 58 is threaded on the upper end of the shaft. The shaft is supported by a thrust washer 59 placed between the lower side of the pinion 58 and the upper edge of the bearing 51. The pinion is shown in Fig. 1 between spaced bevel gears ll which are keyed on a shaft 6| which drives the lower roll 62 of the wringer. Bushings "a keyed on the shaft 6| hold the gears 60 against a sleeve "b on the shaft. The bushings are rotatably carried in bearings 600 in a sliding carriage "d. Shoulders 89s on the bushings engage the inner sides of the carriage 60d and hold the gears I and the bushings 60a in fixed relation to the carriage. By sliding the carriage to the right or left by suitable mechanism (not shown), the left or right gear I is brought into engagement with the pinion it, and the direction of rotation of the wringer rolls is reversed.

The casing 02a of the wringer has a depending tubular portion 43 which is rotatable on the upper end of the wringer post 29a. The lower end of the tubular portion of the wringer casing rests on a collar 84 at the upper end of a sleeve a which is slidable on the wringer post. The sleeve extends within an opening 65a in a bracket 65 and is secured to the bracket by a set screw it. The bracket has a groove "b on the under side which rests on the upper edge of the downturnedrimi'lofthetub. Aclampilhavinga to hold the wringer post in a iixed position relative to the tub. By adjusting the position of the cultlar $4 with reference to the bracket 65, the position of the gears with reference to the pinion 58 can be adjusted. This forms a convenient method for adjusting the gearing for operating the wringer. The wringer casing may be swung on the supporting collar so that it may be available for wringing in different positions. A pin 10 slidably carried by the wringer casing is urged by a spring 12 into one of openings H in the supporting collar to lock the wringer in any desired position. By raising the pin clear of openings ll against the force of spring I2, the

wringer may be freely swung on the wringer post.

The wringer may be removed from the washing machine by lifting from the end of the wringer The arrangement for supporting and driving the wringer is not claimed herein, it being claimed in my divisional application Serial No 23,394, filed May 25, 1935.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a washing machine, a shaft having a driving pinion, a rack, means for reciprocating said rack, a pivoted guiding lever for guiding the reciprocating movement of said rack into and out of engagement with said pinion, an adjusting lever, means for reciprocating the adjusting lever, means engaging one side of the adjusting lever ior guiding the reciprocating movement thereof,

and a pin and cam slot connection between said levers whereby reciprocating movement of the adjusting lever causes the rack to be moved into and out of engagement with said pinion.

2. In a washing machine, a shaft having a driv- 5 ing pinion, a rack, means for reciprocating said rack, a pivoted guiding lever for guiding the reciprocating movement of said rack into and out of e -gagement with said pinion, an adjusting lever, means for reciprocating the adjusting lever, an 10 adjustable stop engaging the adjusting lever for guiding the reciprocating movement thereof, and a pin and cam slot connection between said levers whereby reciprocating movement of the adjusting lever causes the rack to be moved into and out of i5 engagement with said pinion..

3. In a washing machine, a shaft having a driving pinion, a rack, means for reciprocating said rack, a pivoted guiding lever for. guiding the reciprocating movement of said rack into and out 20 of engagement with said pinion, an adjusting lever, means for reciprocating the adjusting lever.

a gear casing, an adjustable stop threaded through the side walls of said gear casing and engaging the adjusting lever for guiding the reciprocating 2 movement thereof, and a pin and cam slot connection between said lever whereby reciprocating movement of the adjusting lever causes the rack to be moved into and out of engagement with said pinion. 30

GEORGE W. DURHAM. 

